δέ (postpositive) was originally an adverb with a force not unlike that of on the other hand, on the contrary; later it became a conjunction commonly represented by but or and, which are, however, mere makeshifts of translation. δέ serves to mark that something is different from what precedes, but only to offset it, not to exclude or contradict it; it denotes only a slight contrast, and is therefore weaker than ἀλλά, but stronger than καί. δέ is adversative and copulative; but the two uses are not always clearly to be distinguished.